Researching Indigenous Cultures

This fall, second graders have been exploring the Indigenous tribes of Massachusetts. In social studies,  students have been working in small groups to research the Wampanoag, Nipmuc, and Mohican peoples, uncovering fascinating details about daily life, homes, and traditional foods. The project is helping students practice essential nonfiction reading skills, including identifying key information, highlighting key details, and summarizing in their own words. Using guided notes sheets and research organizers, they are gathering facts from books and other media, then carefully transferring their findings onto notecards, with an emphasis on combining facts into paragraphs and on neat, even handwriting. After Thanksgiving, students will incorporate their research into informational posters about their tribe.

To enrich their understanding of the indigenous experience, students had the opportunity to visit with Loren Spears and Chrystal Mars Baker of the Tomaquag Museum and the Narragansett Tribe of Rhode Island earlier this fall. They were introduced to native storytelling, traditional games, and fascinating facts about the Narragansett Tribal Citizens. They even recreated their own version of the indigenous game “Hubbub” to take home and play, connecting hands-on experiences with the history they are learning in class.